Amazon has confirmed that it is laying off around 16,000 people. The message, seen by CNBC, appeared to acknowledge changes already underway, even as the company has not formally announced new layoffs.
Hours before the confirmation, the retail giant mistakenly sent an internal email to employees in its cloud computing division, Amazon Web Services (AWS), referring to organizational changes and impacted staff, before the message was marked as “canceled. ” The email added to uncertainty inside the company as Amazon prepares for another round of job cuts across its corporate workforce, including AWS and its retail operations. Amazon did not immediately comment on the email or clarify why it was sent in error.
As announced by the company, impacted employees will get 90 days to look for a new role internally. For those who are unable to find a new role at Amazon or who choose not to look for one, Amazon will provide transition support including severance pay, outplacement services, health insurance benefits (as applicable), and mor Amazon is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter earnings on February 5, when investors may get more clarity on the company’s future job cuts and restructuring plans.
In the message, Aubrey wrote, “Changes like this are hard on everyone,” adding that the decisions were being made to position AWS for the future. The email was sent by Colleen Aubrey, senior vice president of applied AI solutions at AWS. The email also referred to a post by Amazon’s chief human resources officer, Beth Galetti, and stated that the company had notified “impacted colleagues in our organization. Amazon has not explained what Project Dawn refers to or why the email was distributed to staff.
As mentioned above, the mistaken email comes hours before Amazon confirmed to cut around 16,000 jobs.
Announcing the job cuts, Beth Galetti, Senior Vice President of People Experience and Technology at Amazon said that the company is “making additional organizational changes” that will impact teams. “I recognize this is difficult news, which is why I’m sharing what’s happening and why,” she said.